XP Network problem- all fine and then cant connect to peers intermittantly

[Moad]

Ive got one PC running xp home and a laptop running Xp pro. Both
running wireless and dhcp on the router. I tried with fixed IP and got
the same problem. Basically i can connect and file and printer share
when i first bootup. Then randomly i cant access one from
the other. I can still connect to the net on both of them just not each
other. I go
repair connection on both and its all fine again. Its only these 2
devices on the network (untill i get my 360 soon), running a printer on
the pc locally and just sharing it. If u need any more info please let
me know.

Modem IP is 10.1.1.1
Router IP is 198.162.1.1
DHCP settings
start at 198.162.1.100
2 connections- so the only possibilitys are 1.100 and 1.101


My PC is named office and laptop...Laptop here is the output from
each.


Windows IP Configuration


Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : office
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No


Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:


Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 802.11g USB 2.0 Wireless
LAN Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-40-F4-E6-EF-13
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.100
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1


Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Friday, March 24, 2006
2:22:58 PM


Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Saturday, March 25, 2006
2:22:58 PM


Status for domain MSHOME on transport
\Device\NetBT_Tcpip_{2F0F8635-B74D-4301-9F74-1D53281707EE}
Browsing is active on domain.
Master browser name is: LAPTOP
Could not open key in registry, error = 5 Unable to determine
build of browser master: 5
\\\\LAPTOP . Version:05.01 Flags: 71003 NT POTENTIAL
BACKUP MASTER
1 backup servers retrieved from master LAPTOP
\\LAPTOP
There are 2 servers in domain MSHOME on transport
\Device\NetBT_Tcpip_{2F0F8635-B74D-4301-9F74-1D53281707EE}
There are 1 domains in domain MSHOME on transport
\Device\NetBT_Tcpip_{2F0F8635-B74D-4301-9F74-1D53281707EE}


And from the Laptop


Windows IP Configuration


Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : laptop
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No


Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:


Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : National Semiconductor
DP83815-Based PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-0F-20-24-28-6F


Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:


Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :


Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 802.11g Wireless CardBus PC

Card
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-E0-98-D7-80-6B
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes


IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.101
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 10.1.1.1
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Friday, March 24, 2006
2:36:49 PM


Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Saturday, March 25, 2006
2:36:49 PM


Status for domain MSHOME on transport
\Device\NetBT_Tcpip_{B924DEB0-6B48-432A-BE95-D5AAED57EDB6}
Browsing is active on domain.
Master browser name is: LAPTOP
Master browser is running build 2600
1 backup servers retrieved from master LAPTOP
\\LAPTOP
There are 2 servers in domain MSHOME on transport
\Device\NetBT_Tcpip_{B924DEB0-6B48-432A-BE95-D5AAED57EDB6}
There are 1 domains in domain MSHOME on transport
\Device\NetBT_Tcpip_{B924DEB0-6B48-432A-BE95-D5AAED57EDB6}


Thanks in advance for any suggestions. I would prefer to have static IP

for PC-torrents.

 

[Chuck]

Ive got one PC running xp home and a laptop running Xp pro. Both
running wireless and dhcp on the router. I tried with fixed IP and got
the same problem. Basically i can connect and file and printer share
when i first bootup. Then randomly i cant access one from
the other. I can still connect to the net on both of them just not each
other. I go
repair connection on both and its all fine again. Its only these 2
devices on the network (untill i get my 360 soon), running a printer on
the pc locally and just sharing it. If u need any more info please let
me know.

Modem IP is 10.1.1.1
Router IP is 198.162.1.1
DHCP settings
start at 198.162.1.100
2 connections- so the only possibilitys are 1.100 and 1.101


My PC is named office and laptop...Laptop here is the output from
each.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions. I would prefer to have static IP

for PC-torrents.

OK, what does this tell us.
# Both computers on same subnet 192.168.1/24, same DHCP and DNS server
192.168.1.1.
# Both computers have acceptable node type Unknown.
# Both computers see each other ("There are 2 servers in domain MSHOME"), and
both acknowledge the same master browser Laptop.
# Neither computer shows any gratuitous protocol or transport.

Lets look at physical connectivity first.

Install PingPlotter on both computers.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/essential-tools-for-desktop-and.html#PingPlotter>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/essential-tools-for-desktop-and.html#PingPlotter

Set PP up twice on each computer - ping the other computer (by IP address), and
ping the router.

Also, install NetStumbler on the laptop. Hoping that the WiFi card is NS
compatible, NS will graphically display signal strength. See if it shows a
pattern similar to PP.

And run browstat again on both computers, when they lose access to each other.

 

[Moad]

k im not quite sure what info u need from PP but PC is all green
pinging laptop but laptop is red in HOP column pinging PC. PC is green
when pinging router. Lappy first went red and said 100% packet loss and
then went green but is stable on yellow now. Netstumber from laptop
says SNR 35-47 signal is -51 noise -100 DNR+ 49.

sorry but im not quite sure what info u need. Thanks for ur help!

Nick

 

[Chuck]

k im not quite sure what info u need from PP but PC is all green
pinging laptop but laptop is red in HOP column pinging PC. PC is green
when pinging router. Lappy first went red and said 100% packet loss and
then went green but is stable on yellow now. Netstumber from laptop
says SNR 35-47 signal is -51 noise -100 DNR+ 49.

sorry but im not quite sure what info u need. Thanks for ur help!

Nick

Nick,

That's a start.

If PP display shows red, that indicates NO response. If it shows red pinging
the other computer, and green pinging the router, that pretty much indicates
that the other computer has dropped connectivity, or is blocking the ping
packets.

Did you run PP on the other computer too? Use that to correlate.

Did you check the power setting on the network adapters?
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/does-your-computer-lose-network.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/does-your-computer-lose-network.html

 

[Moad]

yeah i did run PP on both PC and Laptop, i wrote that above. The turn
off decive to save power was checked so i have now unchecked that. Ill
run browstat again once they disconnect from each other again. Thanks
for your help.

 

[Chuck]

yeah i did run PP on both PC and Laptop, i wrote that above. The turn
off decive to save power was checked so i have now unchecked that. Ill
run browstat again once they disconnect from each other again. Thanks
for your help.

Well, here's hoping that it was the power setting. That one is a popular
solution. If that wasn't it, we'll get back to work. Let us know in a day or
so please.

 

[Moad]

will do. seems fine so far. thankyou very much! will reply if it d/c's
again.

 

[Moad]

still getting the d/c. any more ideaS?

 

[Moad]

dont know if this helps but when i set the network up i checked the
option for connecting to a hub instaed (other, and then top option)
instead of conneting through a residential gateway. Not sure if this
would change much but the more info uve got the better. Thanks again
for any info u can provide.

 

[Moad]

BUMP!

 

[Chuck]

BUMP!

There it is.

Of course, your tendency to delete all of the previous conversation doesn't
help. Read my article, and see why please:
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/how-to-post-on-usenet-and-encourage.html#TopPosting>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/how-to-post-on-usenet-and-encourage.html#TopPosting

So, back to it. So you changed the power setting, and got no improvement. Now,
looking at PingPlotter on both, pinging each from the other (and by IP address
please), what do you see when one loses access to the other? Does each lose
access to the other simultaneously? Looking at PP, does it suggest any pattern?
Does connectivity drop without you doing anything special? No rebooting either,
etc? And even though they lose contact with each other, do you see no change in
PP running against the router? What make and model router?

 

[Moad]

i didnt delete the posts?! if i did it was unintentional. I will give
you some output from PP when they lose connection again. I dont do
anything special when they lose connection, it sometimes happens when
they are idle, or when im transferring files etc. Other days i can
stream music and copy files across no problems. Basically random as far
as i can tell. Connectivity to the internet is always there that never
drops on either machine. Its only from each other. When it happens they
both lose connection to each other so im assuming it must be a problem
in the router. ie. i cant access pc from laptop or latptop from pc. Its
a Netcomm 5540 Wireless 4 port router with the latest firmware. Ill
run PP again when they lose connection. sorry bout the delete and
thanks for your response.

 

[Chuck]

i didnt delete the posts?! if i did it was unintentional. I will give
you some output from PP when they lose connection again. I dont do
anything special when they lose connection, it sometimes happens when
they are idle, or when im transferring files etc. Other days i can
stream music and copy files across no problems. Basically random as far
as i can tell. Connectivity to the internet is always there that never
drops on either machine. Its only from each other. When it happens they
both lose connection to each other so im assuming it must be a problem
in the router. ie. i cant access pc from laptop or latptop from pc. Its
a Netcomm 5540 Wireless 4 port router with the latest firmware. Ill
run PP again when they lose connection. sorry bout the delete and
thanks for your response.

OK, you're using the Google web interface, which makes it impossible to
instinctively quote previous posts. So I'll try and remember previous posts the
best I can, and I'll ask you to repost previously reported information, without
you harassing me "I already said that".

To do a quoted reply, you have to select "show options" in the post header, near
my name. Then you select "Reply" from the expanded menu.

Now one of the advantages of PingPlotter is that its time display shows detail
in drill down. You can look at an overview (48 hours), or any of 9 other time
scales. This makes it possible to look for trends and patterns.

I'm a "student" of Chaos Theory, which says essentially that nothing is truly
random, everything has a cause. Computer problems are not truly random; even a
random number generator depends upon a seed.

So the first thing to do is to isolate the problem. You state that connectivity
with the router, and the Internet, is not lost by either computer? Just
"random" connectivity between file sharing on each computer. You're verifying
this by a total of 4 PP displays:
1) Laptop pings 192.168.1.100.
2) Laptop pings 192.168.1.1.
3) Office pings 192.168.1.101.
4) Office pings 192.168.1.1.

And when Office can't access Laptop, Laptop can't access Office either? And at
that same time, you get red displays on #1 and on #3, and green / black on #2
and on #4.

Please correct me where my assumptions are incorrect. We need to start with a
baseline of understanding.

 

[Moad]

OK, you're using the Google web interface, which makes it impossible to
instinctively quote previous posts. So I'll try and remember previous posts the
best I can, and I'll ask you to repost previously reported information, without
you harassing me "I already said that".

To do a quoted reply, you have to select "show options" in the post header, near
my name. Then you select "Reply" from the expanded menu.

Now one of the advantages of PingPlotter is that its time display shows detail
in drill down. You can look at an overview (48 hours), or any of 9 other time
scales. This makes it possible to look for trends and patterns.

I'm a "student" of Chaos Theory, which says essentially that nothing is truly
random, everything has a cause. Computer problems are not truly random; even a
random number generator depends upon a seed.

So the first thing to do is to isolate the problem. You state that connectivity
with the router, and the Internet, is not lost by either computer? Just
"random" connectivity between file sharing on each computer. You're verifying
this by a total of 4 PP displays:
1) Laptop pings 192.168.1.100.
2) Laptop pings 192.168.1.1.
3) Office pings 192.168.1.101.
4) Office pings 192.168.1.1.

And when Office can't access Laptop, Laptop can't access Office either? And at
that same time, you get red displays on #1 and on #3, and green / black on #2
and on #4.

Please correct me where my assumptions are incorrect. We need to start with a
baseline of understanding.

Do u want me to Save the output to a text file? The ping is
inconsistent between PC and Laptop (average ping of 6) however solid
between laptop to router (average of 2). Ping from PC to router didnt
move from 1 over 5 minutes. And pinging PC from laptop average of 2
also. Ill give you the rest of the pings once i get a disconnect.
shouldnt be too long.

 

[Chuck]

Do u want me to Save the output to a text file? The ping is
inconsistent between PC and Laptop (average ping of 6) however solid
between laptop to router (average of 2). Ping from PC to router didnt
move from 1 over 5 minutes. And pinging PC from laptop average of 2
also. Ill give you the rest of the pings once i get a disconnect.
shouldnt be too long.

You'll have 4 PP traces for me? Email them to me, my address is below.

 

[Chuck]

Do u want me to Save the output to a text file? The ping is
inconsistent between PC and Laptop (average ping of 6) however solid
between laptop to router (average of 2). Ping from PC to router didnt
move from 1 over 5 minutes. And pinging PC from laptop average of 2
also. Ill give you the rest of the pings once i get a disconnect.
shouldnt be too long.

You'll have 4 PP traces for me? Save them as *.pp2 - Save Sample Set - that's
PP data. Email them to me, my address is below.

 

[Moad]

You'll have 4 PP traces for me? Save them as *.pp2 - Save Sample Set - that's
PP data. Email them to me, my address is below.

Ok now after changing the power settings there appears to be a change.
I can access the PC from laptop but not laptop from PC. Both router
pings are fine. Ill save the pings now and then repair connection and
save. so ill have 8 PP outputs for u. When connected (PC to router, pc
to laptop, laptop to router, laptop to PC) and disconnected ...

 

[Chuck]

Ok now after changing the power settings there appears to be a change.
I can access the PC from laptop but not laptop from PC. Both router
pings are fine. Ill save the pings now and then repair connection and
save. so ill have 8 PP outputs for u. When connected (PC to router, pc
to laptop, laptop to router, laptop to PC) and disconnected ...

How about you start each trace going, and leave it going, thru a disconnection.
You don't just run PP then kill it. You can leave PP going for an hour, or a
day. And if it's all in one file / computer, it's easier to see the problem.

 

[Moad]

How about you start each trace going, and leave it going, thru a disconnection.
You don't just run PP then kill it. You can leave PP going for an hour, or a
day. And if it's all in one file / computer, it's easier to see the problem.

ok will do. sorry for the confusion im new to most of this networking
gear!